Ejecting mechanism for slug casting machines



Nov. 2l, 1950 R; H; TURNER EJECTING MECHANISM FOR SLUG CSTING MACHINES Filed Marc'zh 20, 1947 tt* m INVENTOR Patented Nov. 21, 1 :950

UNLTED STATES PATENT OFFICE EJECTING MECHANISM. FOR SLUG CASTING MACHINES.

Ransom H'. Turner, Great Neck, N. Y., assignor to Mergenthal'er Linotype Company, a corporation off'N-ew York Application March. 20, 1947, Serial N o. 735,988

3v Claims; (Cl. 19g-60) to. the slug ejecting mechanism embodied. in thatv machine. This ejecting mechanism comprises, as usuah an ejector slide and. an ejector blade, but diiers groin the, usual constructionV in, that the ejector slide is operable by an individual power unit, inthe form of a pneumatic piston and cylindcr arrangement, throughl the medium. of a pair ot toggle devices which carry the ejector blade and are adapted, prior to the active stroke of` theslide, to-advance the blade relatively theretov so as to increase the initial pressure exerted upon the; base of theslug in breaking its adherence to the side walls of the mold cavity. As another departura the ejectingv mechanism includes safety means for stopping the operation ofthe machine in the event the ejector slide. fails to complete its return stroke, as might occur, for instance, upon failure of operation of the individual power unit.

Riel?ezrringY to the drawings t,

Fig. l, is, ai front elevationv ot. the ejecting .mec hanism showing by the full. lines: the parts in their nermal, position and by theV dotted lines the toggle connections between the ejector slide and ejector blade straightenedv out to advance the blade:relativelyto the slide.;-

Eig.. is: a. frontv elevation similar to IFP-ig'.` l; but showing the relative position of the parts during the ejection of the slug from the mold; and

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1.

The reciprocable ejector slide G is arranged between the two front flanges D5, D6 of the bracket D and is formed with a pair of vertically disposed side members G1, which latter are connected together by an integral offset web portion G2 and provided with tongues g extending longitudinally thereof and engaging in corresponding grooves or guideways d12 formed in said flanges. The ejector slide G is equipped, as usual, with an ejector blade G3 but, according to the present invention, the blade instead of being .attached directly to the slide is carried by a horizontal subsidiary slide bar G4, the latter (Fig. 3) being arranged between the vertical side members G1 of the ejector slide and connected thereto by tongues and grooves g1 in order to be capable of a limited vertical movement in relation to the slide.

In the `preferred embodiment illustrated, the slide bar G4 is operated by a pair of pneumatically controlled toggle devices G5, each comprising .a lever g2 and a link g3, the former being pivoted to the upper end of the contiguous side' member G1 of the ejector slide, and the lattery connecting the shorter arm of said lever to one end of the bar G4. An adjustable banking screw g5, arranged to engage the upper edge of the web portion G2, limits the upward movement of the ejector slide,v and a lug y@ projecting forwardlyfrom the web and overlying the bar G4', limits the to the oposite ends. ofthe cylinder' G.r Normally,.

air pressure in the4 bottom of' the cylinder sus.- tains the. ejector slide through. the medium of the bar G4' and' toggle devices. G5' (now partially collapsed) in 'it's raised positionshown in 1,. said bar engaging thelug r1.6' andwith the web, portionof the. slide engaging` the banking screw g5'. However assoon. as. the, air,v pressure is. reversed. to:

the, top of the cylinder through the pipe line 97 thetoggle devices GS5 will. be straightened out and force the ejector blade G3` downwardly far. enough. to. overcome the initial resistance pre.- sented to the blade at the start of the slug ejecting operation. As the toggles are straightened out, the shorter arms of the levers g2 are adapted to bank against the contiguous side members of the ejector slide G and thereby establish a positive connection between the slide and the piston G6, so that the latter by its continued downward movement may impart a full active stroke to the ejector blade for the complete ejection of the slug from the mold B. As a slug is ejected, it passes through an elongated clearance aperture 113, formed in the rigid cross bar D8, and is received by an underlying conveniently located trough or galley Dg fastened to the rear wall of the aperture. Air now is exhausted from the top of the cylinder G'7 through the pipe line g'I and re-admitted under pressure at the bottom through the pipe line g8. In rising, the piston G6 will first collapse the toggle sufficiently to raise the subsidiary slide bar G4 into engagement with the projecting lug g6 of the web G2 and then, as it continues its upward movement, restore the ejector slide to its original position against the banking screw g5.

The use of toggle devices for imparting the initial stroke to the ejector blade is particularly advantageous when, as herein, the blade is operated pneumatically. As well understood in the art, the greatest pressure which the ejector blade must exert is at the start of the slug ejecting operation when it is called upon to break the adhesion of the Vslug with the mold; thereafter, the resistance offered by the slug is much less and little more than is required for the slug trimming operation. It is evident, therefore, that a much smaller pneumatic piston may be used with the toggle devices than withoutthem.

The mold B is provided at its opposite ends with tongues 'o arranged to fit in fore-and-aft grooves dll formed in the front flanges D5 and D6 of the main bracket D, whereby the mold is accurately guided as it is moved horizontally to and from the ejecting station. Safety means are employed to stop the operation of the machine if the mold should not move forward to the ejecting position at the proper time. Such means comprise a short horizontal rock shaft i3 having two depending arms I4 and l5, the former being equipped with an adjusting screw I6 disposed in the path of the mold, and the latter being operatively connected to the stop devices through a Bowden wire 9. Danger of breakage or serious damage to the ejecting mechanism, the operation of which immediately follows the arrival of the mold at the ejecting station is thus averted.

A safety attachment is also provided for stopping the operation of the machine in the event the ejector slide G is not raised high enough, after the slug ejecting operation, for the attached blade G3 to clear the mold B as the latter is Withdrawn from the ejecting station. Said safety attachment includes a small bell-crank vlever 4l pivoted to the front guiding ange Di of the U-shaped bracket D and having one of its arms connected through a Bowden Wire 42 to the stop devices. The other arm of the lever 4| is equipped with an adjusting screw 43 located above and in the vertical path of the contiguous upright side member G1 of the ejector slide G, so that the leverjwill be rocked in the proper direction to disable the stop devices as the slide G completes its upward movement (see Fig. l). If, however, anything should interfere with the normal operation of the ejector slide, the lever 4i will reo0 main in the position shown in Fig. 2 and cause disengagement of main clutch before the mold B starts its retreat from the ejecting station.

In the accompanying drawings, the improvements have been shown merely in preferred form and by way of example, and it should therefore be understood that the invention is not limited to any specific form or embodiment except insofar as such limitations are specified in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a slug casting machine equipped with a mold and slug ejecting mechanism, said mechanism including, in combination, a reciprocable ejector slide, an ejector blade mounted for movement relatively to the ejector slide in the direction of the slug ejection, and intermediate powermultiplying connections whereby the blade, prior to the active stroke of the slide, is advanced relatively thereto sunciently far to break the adherence of the slug to the side walls of the mold cavity.

2. A combination according to claim 1 wherein the slug ejecting mechanism also includes pneumatically controlled means for operating the ejector slide.

3. A combination according to claim 1 wherein the slug ejecting mechanism also includes pneumatically controlled means for operating the ejector slide, and wherein the power-multiplying connections between said slide and ejector blade includes a pair of toggle devices operable by said means and through which the advance movement of the ejector blade is effected under increased pressure.

RANSOM H. TURNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 945,609 Rogers Jan. 4, 19'10 2,178,318 Woodhall Oct. 31, 1939 2,307,068 Plostaras Jan. 5, 1943 2,429,007 Wilske s Oct. 14, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 460,024 Great Britain Jan. 19, 1937 

